[Foundation-l] copyright question about data

Mon Apr 11 23:41:24 UTC 2005

On Apr 11, 2005 11:42 PM, Edward Peschko <esp5 at pge.com> wrote:
> hey all,
> 
> sorry if this is a FAQ - and I'm not sure if this question belongs in this
> mailing list - but since it concerns the legal side of the fence wrt
> wikipedia contributions here goes:
> 
> What's the legal status of data retrieved from non-public domain sources?
> 
> I understand that text that is retrieved from copyrighted materials is
> copyrighted, but how about data and figures that deal with common interest
> topics? Can you really copyright the amount of wheat grown in a year in
> bangladesh, or the number of accidents in a year on california roads?

No, you cannot copyright the data itself. What is copyrighted is the
*representation* of the data, while the *selection* of the data MIGHT
be copyrighted.

> And how about graphs? Is data that is extrapolated from graphs and
> used in derivative graphs considered a 'creative work' of its own?

Yes, I would not see what 'creative work' in making the graph would be
included in such data. The copyright on the graph is not on the data
represented, but in the representation (e.g. the width-to-height
ratio, the colours used, etcetera).

Note: I am not even close to being a lawyer

Andre Engels